MARKETING
6 Types of Blog Posts That Bring More Traffic To Your Website
Are you looking to bring more traffic to your website?
Creating the right content is key to attracting more visitors to your site.
One way to do this is by writing different types of blog posts that are proven to be the most engaging for your audience.
This article will discuss six kinds of articles you can use for this purpose.
Listicles
Listicles are articles presented in a list format, and they have become increasingly popular over the years.
They are easy to read and visually appealing, making them a great way to attract readers.
People are often drawn to listicles because they know exactly what to expect from the content, and it’s usually quick and informative.
Follow these tips for creating a successful listicle:
- Choose a compelling topic. Your topic should be something that your target audience is interested in. It could be a trending or controversial topic.
- Use numbers. Since it’s all about lists, make sure to use numbers in your title and throughout the article. Numbers make the content more scannable and easier to read.
- Keep it concise. People are drawn to listicles because they provide quick and digestible information. Keep your paragraphs short and to the point, and use bullet points or subheadings for each item on your list.
- Use images or videos. Adding visuals to make the content more appealing and break up the text. Use high-quality images or short videos that are relevant to the subject.
- Make it shareable. Listicles have a high potential for social sharing, so make sure to include social media buttons or links at the end of your post. You can also ask readers to leave their thoughts or opinions in the comments section.
Here’s an example of a successful listicle:
In this post, you can find the most interesting SEO statistics, with data, screenshots, and useful comments.
Reviews
Reviews are powerful tools for driving traffic to your website because people love hearing about other’s experiences with products or services.
They act as social proof and can influence a potential customer’s decision to purchase.
Here are some tips for writing effective reviews:
- Be honest. Your review should be based on your genuine experience with the product or service. Don’t exaggerate or make false claims.
- Include images or videos. People are more likely to engage with your review if it includes visuals. Pictures or videos can help showcase the product or service and make your review more compelling.
- Provide details. Be specific about what you liked and didn’t like about the product or service. This will give readers a better understanding of your experience and help them make an informed decision.
- Include affiliate links (if applicable). If you are an affiliate for the product or service, make sure to include your unique affiliate link in the review. This can help drive traffic and potentially earn you some commission.
Here’s an example of a successful review:
This comprehensive review by ModestMoney about Apex Trading Funding discusses the pros and cons, features, and overall experience with the platform.
Case Studies
Case studies are real-life examples that showcase the success or impact of a product or service. They are highly effective in driving traffic because they provide evidence and credibility to your claims.
Here’s how to create a successful case study:
- Choose a relevant topic. Your case study should be related to your niche and target audience. It could be about the success of a specific strategy, tool, or case study.
- Include data and statistics. People are drawn to facts and figures, so make sure to include relevant data in your case study. This can help add credibility to your claims.
- Share specific results. Be transparent about the results of your case study, whether they are positive or negative. This will give readers a realistic idea of what to expect.
- Include visuals. As with all types of blog posts, visuals are crucial for keeping readers engaged. Use images, charts, or graphs to visualize the results and make the content more appealing.
- Make it easy to read. Case studies can be detailed and technical, so make sure to break up the text using headings, bullet points, and short paragraphs.
Here’s an example of a successful case study:
This case study by PointerPro discusses how their software helped a consulting firm streamline its client intake process, resulting in increased efficiency and revenue.
Infographics
Infographics are visual representations of information or data. They are highly shareable and can bring in a lot of traffic to your website.
Here’s how to create a successful infographic:
- Choose an interesting topic. Infographics should be visually appealing but also provide valuable information to your target audience. Choose among infographic trends or interesting topics that are relevant and interesting.
- Organize the information logically. Make sure the content flows in a logical order so readers can easily follow along. Use headings and subheadings to break up the information.
- Use visuals wisely. The main attraction of an infographic is its visuals, so make sure to use them wisely. Use graphs, charts, icons, and images to enhance the information and make it more appealing.
- Include sources/references. If you are presenting data or statistics in your infographic, make sure to include the sources or references at the bottom. This will add credibility to your content.
- Make it easy to share. Include social media buttons or links at the bottom of your infographic so readers can easily share it on their own platforms.
Here’s an example of a successful infographic:
This infographic by HostPapa breaks down the process of planning a website design into easy-to-follow steps, using visuals and statistics to make it more engaging.
Interviews
Interviews are great for driving traffic because they offer valuable insights from experts or influencers in your niche. They can also help build relationships and connections with other professionals in your industry.
Here’s how to conduct a successful interview:
- Choose the right person. Make sure the person you’re interviewing is relevant and interesting to your target audience. Consider their expertise, experience, and influence in the industry.
- Prepare thoughtful questions. Do some research on the person you’re interviewing and come up with thoughtful questions that will provide valuable insights for your audience.
- Record or transcribe the interview. You can either record the interview or transcribe it after it’s done. This will make it easier to create an engaging post afterward.
- Add context and visuals. Introduce the interviewee, provide some background information, and add visuals such as images or videos to make the post more appealing.
Here’s an example of a successful interview:
This in-depth interview by SEJ with CEO Jenise Uehara about implementing a four-day workweek discusses the challenges, benefits, and lessons learned from this strategy. Interviews are a great way to provide valuable insights and build connections within your industry.
How-to Guides
How-to guides are practical and informative posts that provide step-by-step instructions on how to accomplish a specific task or goal. They can be highly valuable for readers and bring in a lot of traffic to your website.
Here’s how to create a successful how-to guide:
- Choose a relevant topic. Make sure the topic is something your target audience would be interested in and that relates to your niche.
- Break it down into steps. Break down the process into clear and concise steps that are easy for readers to follow.
- Include visuals or videos. Visual aids such as images, screenshots, or videos can make the instructions more understandable and appealing.
- Be thorough but concise. Make sure to provide all the necessary information and details, but keep the guide concise and avoid unnecessary fluff.
- Include tips and troubleshooting. To make your how-to guide more valuable, include tips or troubleshooting advice for common problems readers may encounter.
Here’s an example of a successful how-to guide:
In this guide by Zumvu, they break down the process of optimizing video SEO into easy-to-follow steps with visuals and tips for improving search ranking.
Conclusion
Creating different types of blog posts can help bring in traffic to your website and keep readers engaged. Case studies, infographics, interviews, and how-to guides are just a few examples of successful posts you can create. Make sure to choose topics that appeal to your target audience, organize the information logically, use visuals effectively, and end with a call to action. With these tips in mind, you can create engaging and valuable content that will drive traffic to your website.
MARKETING
YouTube Ad Specs, Sizes, and Examples [2024 Update]
Introduction
With billions of users each month, YouTube is the world’s second largest search engine and top website for video content. This makes it a great place for advertising. To succeed, advertisers need to follow the correct YouTube ad specifications. These rules help your ad reach more viewers, increasing the chance of gaining new customers and boosting brand awareness.
Types of YouTube Ads
Video Ads
- Description: These play before, during, or after a YouTube video on computers or mobile devices.
- Types:
- In-stream ads: Can be skippable or non-skippable.
- Bumper ads: Non-skippable, short ads that play before, during, or after a video.
Display Ads
- Description: These appear in different spots on YouTube and usually use text or static images.
- Note: YouTube does not support display image ads directly on its app, but these can be targeted to YouTube.com through Google Display Network (GDN).
Companion Banners
- Description: Appears to the right of the YouTube player on desktop.
- Requirement: Must be purchased alongside In-stream ads, Bumper ads, or In-feed ads.
In-feed Ads
- Description: Resemble videos with images, headlines, and text. They link to a public or unlisted YouTube video.
Outstream Ads
- Description: Mobile-only video ads that play outside of YouTube, on websites and apps within the Google video partner network.
Masthead Ads
- Description: Premium, high-visibility banner ads displayed at the top of the YouTube homepage for both desktop and mobile users.
YouTube Ad Specs by Type
Skippable In-stream Video Ads
- Placement: Before, during, or after a YouTube video.
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 1920 x 1080px
- Vertical: 1080 x 1920px
- Square: 1080 x 1080px
- Aspect Ratio:
- Horizontal: 16:9
- Vertical: 9:16
- Square: 1:1
- Length:
- Awareness: 15-20 seconds
- Consideration: 2-3 minutes
- Action: 15-20 seconds
Non-skippable In-stream Video Ads
- Description: Must be watched completely before the main video.
- Length: 15 seconds (or 20 seconds in certain markets).
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 1920 x 1080px
- Vertical: 1080 x 1920px
- Square: 1080 x 1080px
- Aspect Ratio:
- Horizontal: 16:9
- Vertical: 9:16
- Square: 1:1
Bumper Ads
- Length: Maximum 6 seconds.
- File Format: MP4, Quicktime, AVI, ASF, Windows Media, or MPEG.
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 640 x 360px
- Vertical: 480 x 360px
In-feed Ads
- Description: Show alongside YouTube content, like search results or the Home feed.
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 1920 x 1080px
- Vertical: 1080 x 1920px
- Square: 1080 x 1080px
- Aspect Ratio:
- Horizontal: 16:9
- Square: 1:1
- Length:
- Awareness: 15-20 seconds
- Consideration: 2-3 minutes
- Headline/Description:
- Headline: Up to 2 lines, 40 characters per line
- Description: Up to 2 lines, 35 characters per line
Display Ads
- Description: Static images or animated media that appear on YouTube next to video suggestions, in search results, or on the homepage.
- Image Size: 300×60 pixels.
- File Type: GIF, JPG, PNG.
- File Size: Max 150KB.
- Max Animation Length: 30 seconds.
Outstream Ads
- Description: Mobile-only video ads that appear on websites and apps within the Google video partner network, not on YouTube itself.
- Logo Specs:
- Square: 1:1 (200 x 200px).
- File Type: JPG, GIF, PNG.
- Max Size: 200KB.
Masthead Ads
- Description: High-visibility ads at the top of the YouTube homepage.
- Resolution: 1920 x 1080 or higher.
- File Type: JPG or PNG (without transparency).
Conclusion
YouTube offers a variety of ad formats to reach audiences effectively in 2024. Whether you want to build brand awareness, drive conversions, or target specific demographics, YouTube provides a dynamic platform for your advertising needs. Always follow Google’s advertising policies and the technical ad specs to ensure your ads perform their best. Ready to start using YouTube ads? Contact us today to get started!
MARKETING
Why We Are Always ‘Clicking to Buy’, According to Psychologists
Amazon pillows.
MARKETING
A deeper dive into data, personalization and Copilots
Salesforce launched a collection of new, generative AI-related products at Connections in Chicago this week. They included new Einstein Copilots for marketers and merchants and Einstein Personalization.
To better understand, not only the potential impact of the new products, but the evolving Salesforce architecture, we sat down with Bobby Jania, CMO, Marketing Cloud.
Dig deeper: Salesforce piles on the Einstein Copilots
Salesforce’s evolving architecture
It’s hard to deny that Salesforce likes coming up with new names for platforms and products (what happened to Customer 360?) and this can sometimes make the observer wonder if something is brand new, or old but with a brand new name. In particular, what exactly is Einstein 1 and how is it related to Salesforce Data Cloud?
“Data Cloud is built on the Einstein 1 platform,” Jania explained. “The Einstein 1 platform is our entire Salesforce platform and that includes products like Sales Cloud, Service Cloud — that it includes the original idea of Salesforce not just being in the cloud, but being multi-tenancy.”
Data Cloud — not an acquisition, of course — was built natively on that platform. It was the first product built on Hyperforce, Salesforce’s new cloud infrastructure architecture. “Since Data Cloud was on what we now call the Einstein 1 platform from Day One, it has always natively connected to, and been able to read anything in Sales Cloud, Service Cloud [and so on]. On top of that, we can now bring in, not only structured but unstructured data.”
That’s a significant progression from the position, several years ago, when Salesforce had stitched together a platform around various acquisitions (ExactTarget, for example) that didn’t necessarily talk to each other.
“At times, what we would do is have a kind of behind-the-scenes flow where data from one product could be moved into another product,” said Jania, “but in many of those cases the data would then be in both, whereas now the data is in Data Cloud. Tableau will run natively off Data Cloud; Commerce Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud — they’re all going to the same operational customer profile.” They’re not copying the data from Data Cloud, Jania confirmed.
Another thing to know is tit’s possible for Salesforce customers to import their own datasets into Data Cloud. “We wanted to create a federated data model,” said Jania. “If you’re using Snowflake, for example, we more or less virtually sit on your data lake. The value we add is that we will look at all your data and help you form these operational customer profiles.”
Let’s learn more about Einstein Copilot
“Copilot means that I have an assistant with me in the tool where I need to be working that contextually knows what I am trying to do and helps me at every step of the process,” Jania said.
For marketers, this might begin with a campaign brief developed with Copilot’s assistance, the identification of an audience based on the brief, and then the development of email or other content. “What’s really cool is the idea of Einstein Studio where our customers will create actions [for Copilot] that we hadn’t even thought about.”
Here’s a key insight (back to nomenclature). We reported on Copilot for markets, Copilot for merchants, Copilot for shoppers. It turns out, however, that there is just one Copilot, Einstein Copilot, and these are use cases. “There’s just one Copilot, we just add these for a little clarity; we’re going to talk about marketing use cases, about shoppers’ use cases. These are actions for the marketing use cases we built out of the box; you can build your own.”
It’s surely going to take a little time for marketers to learn to work easily with Copilot. “There’s always time for adoption,” Jania agreed. “What is directly connected with this is, this is my ninth Connections and this one has the most hands-on training that I’ve seen since 2014 — and a lot of that is getting people using Data Cloud, using these tools rather than just being given a demo.”
What’s new about Einstein Personalization
Salesforce Einstein has been around since 2016 and many of the use cases seem to have involved personalization in various forms. What’s new?
“Einstein Personalization is a real-time decision engine and it’s going to choose next-best-action, next-best-offer. What is new is that it’s a service now that runs natively on top of Data Cloud.” A lot of real-time decision engines need their own set of data that might actually be a subset of data. “Einstein Personalization is going to look holistically at a customer and recommend a next-best-action that could be natively surfaced in Service Cloud, Sales Cloud or Marketing Cloud.”
Finally, trust
One feature of the presentations at Connections was the reassurance that, although public LLMs like ChatGPT could be selected for application to customer data, none of that data would be retained by the LLMs. Is this just a matter of written agreements? No, not just that, said Jania.
“In the Einstein Trust Layer, all of the data, when it connects to an LLM, runs through our gateway. If there was a prompt that had personally identifiable information — a credit card number, an email address — at a mimum, all that is stripped out. The LLMs do not store the output; we store the output for auditing back in Salesforce. Any output that comes back through our gateway is logged in our system; it runs through a toxicity model; and only at the end do we put PII data back into the answer. There are real pieces beyond a handshake that this data is safe.”